An IceWing Queen's Tale
An Alternate Universe... The dragonets of destiny, the monarchs of the Empire, bent on complete rulership of an entire, united kingdom... One tribe of IceWings stands against them... The Alternate Universe... The sea, a cold border that guarded against the forces of Queen Tsunami and her animus general, Anemone, rippled like the scales of a SeaWing in the frost glazed morning. I touched the tanned parchment with a talon and stared at the water, thoughts chasing each other, tactical plans forming... An IceWing rapped at the door, and I turned to see Regal. "Greetings, Your Majesty," he said, inclining his head in a flash of silver. "A SandWing is waiting for you at the gates of the palace." A SandWing. That was good news. I ruffled my wings and made my way towards the gates, Regal trailing after me protectively. The sky was blue, an innocent colour. I yanked open the gates and a few guards were instantly at my side, wings unfurled threateningly at the SandWing, who was waiting idly in the snow. His scales were dry, and when he moved I could hear a rustling sound of scale against scale. "General Jerboa," I gasped. "Someone get the physician, quickly." I rushed over to him, and I could see that he was more skeletal than ever. Obviously this cold - comfortable enough to the IceWings - wasn't good for him, so I reached for his arm, intending to bring him to the special SandWing quarters. "Did you come alone?" Regal asked. "There wasn't enough bracelets to pass the Great Ice Cliff," he gasped. "One was all we had." He portrayed an interlocking band of chains around his thin wrist, and then it flopped into the snow next to him. The physician arrived in a flurry of wings. Our eyes met, and I could see the questions gleaming in his gaze. "This SandWing is an ally," I said. "General Jerboa," the physician said. He scooped some snow into his talons and rubbed it against the hooked barb on the end of Jerboa's tail. At the SandWing's protest I took a step forwards, but Regal grabbed at my tail. "Apologies, Your Majesty," he said at my glare, "but Azure's just moisturising Jerboa's tail barb." I yanked my tail from his talons and made my way back to the palace, content that Jerboa was in good claws. The reason why he had ventured this far into Ice Kingdom territory was probably not as urgent as his life, so I was fine with waiting a while. The IceWing guards saluted when I entered my chambers. The scroll was still unrolled and I gave it a distasteful glance. If only I could be flying in the sky, with my sister and brothers, not caring about this entire war. I flicked my ears forwards as I saw a blue head slip into the air, just over the ocean's waters. Hastily the SeaWing ducked back into the sea, so I wasn't sure if... "SeaWings," a cry resounded through the corridors and the palace, shattering the air. "SeaWings, at our border!" Regal floundered into my room, just as I shoved past him. "Tsunami?" I asked, and he nodded, panting. His sleek silver sides were heaving with exhaustion, but I decided to pay that no attention for the time being. IceWings streamed into the corridor and the courtyard, flashing like a lake of metallic blues and whites. A few non-tribe dragons mingled, adding various shades of pale gold, dark black, and, in one case, a rippling rainbow of colours. I snapped my wings open, but Regal stopped me. "Shouldn't we discuss things with Tsunami first?" he asked, wincing at my expression. "I know that you don't like her...sorry, that you loathe her, but monarch to monarch." I brushed past him. "I don't want to discuss anything with that excuse of a queen," I growled. "Fine, then," Regal said. He rushed after me, though, and I was grateful that I had such a loyal IceWing. I launched into the air. The crisp morning filled my lungs, and I thought I could detect a trace of albatross, not to mention the sickly, fishy smell of our opponents. The army straightened when they saw me and ruffled their wings in applause as I did an aerial swoop, just as the first SeaWings started to slip onto the shore. They didn't look cold, or on the verge of freezing. Instead they looked ready to fight. Their talons and teeth gleamed dangerously in the sunlight, and I glared at them with a snarl. Tsunami, in polished armour, stared back at me, a sneer on her lips. "Dear Eclipse," she taunted in a singsong way, lashing her thick tail in the snowdrifts, "I haven't seen you in what, fourteen years? Long time no see." I flapped my wings and scowled at her. The rest of the SeaWing army was on the shore, and I saw with a pang of dread the familiar pale pink form of Anemone. The animus looked back at me with those cold blue eyes. Regal joined me in the air. "Anemone?" he called. Anemone turned to look at him, and her own tail lashed. "Regal." I could see the hurt in Regal's eyes as he looked at his former partner. Anemone had been a member of the IceWing tribe for a long time, even if she was a SeaWing, but eventually she had decided that her loyalties were with her terrifying sister. I had seen Anemone like a sibling. And now she was attacking us with the very dragon who had defeated the SkyWings, all those years ago, after Scarlet's allying with the IceWings. Tsunami flicked her ears. "Time to attack, SeaWings," she roared at her army, and they rose in a glittering cloud. The IceWings collided with them, talon locking talon, eyes gleaming with adrenaline. I smacked my tail against a sickly green SeaWing, and he collided with Anemone. The pale SeaWing flung him off of her, then she shoved her talons into the snow. The snow hardened, and she whipped around and flung the hard orb at an approaching IceWing. I heard a smack, and he was unconscious on the tundra, while the enchanted snow flung around, smacking into IceWings. I dodged it once, then twice, then I watched as Regal was hit with it. My friend toppled to the ground, while Azure the physician rushed to his aid. Anemone laughed and Tsunami's muzzle curled with glee. At least, she was looking gleeful, until I whipped my tail against her blue scales. Blood streamed into the snow and she roared, flashing talons at my face. I flung my head back, but slashed against the length of my muzzle, so that blue blood mixed into the snow. An IceWing collided with me, then, as Tsunami turned to face another opponent. "Your Majesty," he gasped. "The NightWings...they're at the Great Ice Cliff! They're flying past it..." He slumped against me, and I supported him with my wings. In the confusion of the battle I dragged him to safety, and then I whipped around. How could the NightWings survive the Great Ice Cliff? Nevermind that, I thought, spraying snow into the eyes of a SeaWing and glazing his wings with frostbreath, I had to stop them, before they came as reinforcements. "Fourth patrol, with me," I roared, and I winged into the air. Tsunami saw me, and she roared in return, whirling her wings in an attempt to race after me. Fourth patrol, a code that every IceWing in the Fourth and Fifth Circles listened too, meant that they were to join me in the air. I watched as IceWings of blue and white streamed after me, forming a tactical wing formation at my tail. IceWings, a more lithe, light-boned species than SeaWings, were faster than most dragons, with the exception of SkyWings. I watched the blue and green flashes of our opponents fade into the distance, and then I faced forwards. That IceWing had better be right, I thought, lashing my tail. I almost hit Regal in his muzzle. "Regal, you useless ermine," I snapped, flapping my wings to steady myself in the dry, frozen air. "What...?" "Your Majesty!" he gasped, floundering after me like a half-drowned seagull. "I had to come, to protect you!" "Regal," I hissed in exasperation, "you are neither Fourth Circle or Fifth Circle. You are Second Circle. And that means that you obey orders from your superiors." "I don't trust anyone," he said archly. "Pardon me, Your Majesty, but you are much safer with me." I flapped my wings once. A slight wind was beginning to blow, pushing us a little faster than usual. The platoon drafted on my wake, and I could feel a surge of pride for my IceWings. I was their protector. I had to defend them against those 'dragonets of destiny.' After fifteen minutes of flying, the Great Ice Cliff loomed ahead of us. A sheer animus-crafted wonder of ice, snow and frost, it glimmered with a dangerous beauty in the sunlight. An unbroken plane of white stretched around it, and I could see our shadows flickering along the snow. Regal squinted. "I don't see any NightWings," he said. "In fact, I don't see anyone." I blinked. Sure enough, there was no glint of black scales that hinted at Starflight's terrifying army of NightWings. No scent of the enemy tribe. I folded my wings and swooped over the Great Ice Cliff. I couldn't see anything for miles. I circled around my patrol, head swinging from side to side. Regal wrung his talons nervously and watched me, until I rejoined them and flicked my tail in anger. "We've been tricked," I snarled at him. "What sort of frozen toad would do that?" Regal's ears pricked and he exhaled a hint of frostbreath. We watched it billow away towards the impersonal glare of blue sky. And then the snow literally imploded. Wings of midnight and sand and sky billowed around us. The patrol was thrown back from the force of the snow and they were soon blocked from view by a cloud of sharp, icy shards. I found Regal with my talons and I clutched onto his arms, my claws digging into his scales. And then the snow was gone. A pure white and unbroken sheet surrounded us. The sky was slightly clouded and there was a hint of frost and storm to the air. I extended my wings cautiously and released Regal's arm. "I am so sorry," I said, gesturing to the beads of blue blood that were running along his scales. "Oh, I don't mind," he said, waving me off. But I could see that he kept his foreleg close to his chest and I winced internally. "Hey! Peasants!" We whipped around to see two IceWings approaching us. They were almost identical, with scales of pure white with subtle hints of frosty blue. Around their necks each was a brace of two circles. "Why are you so close to the palace?" one snarled, lashing her tail. Regal took a protective step in front of me. "What do you mean, so close to the palace?" I asked curiously. "Did we win?" "Did we win?" the other asked incredulously. "Win this stupid war? Of course we haven't." The first one - Unpleasant, I decided to name her - leered at Regal and I. "You obviously aren't very smart," she said, flicking her talons. "But what would I expect from a peasant like you?" Unpleasant's companion laughed. "You can't speak to the queen that way!" Regal finally said. "Who do you think you are?" "The queen? Oh, and I'm Winter, the queen's precious nephew," Identical Twin said. It was Unpleasant's turn to laugh. I flicked my ears at the horrid sound. "I'm sorry," Regal said, teeth bared, "but Queen Eclipse does not deserve..." "Queen Eclipse?" Identical Twin said incredulously. "Queen Glacier is the ruler of the Ice Kingdom. And I'm afraid that I'm going to have to arrest you two for treason." Regal was kneading the snow with his talons and his tail was lashing. "I'd like to see you two useless ermines try." Unpleasant hissed and Identical Twin growled. Suddenly I didn't feel so powerful or confident. These two really thought that they were right. That Queen Glacier - whoever she was - was the rightful ruler, and I, in their eyes, was no more than a peasant. "Wait," I said, putting talons on Regal's shoulder. "You have to excuse my...brother. He has a terrible disease...um, the Icy Fever..." "Some kind of peasant illness?" Unpleasant asked as she took a few hesitant steps back. She looked extremely suspicious while her companion looked as if he was half inclined to believe us. Please let this work, please let this work... "Right!" I said, shoving Regal back. He looked extremely indignant, but at least he had enough sense not to say anything stupid. "It's highly contagious...and you know, the symptoms are extremely....extremely...uh, it involves delirium? And unrational thoughts?" I nudged Regal with my tail. "I'm the king!" he snapped at me. Very convincing, too, I might add. Unpleasant sucked the inside of her mouth as she looked from Regal to me. "I don't know if you're saying the truth or not," she said eventually, "but we can let this slide. Once. If we see you this close to the palace again, though, you're not going to have any scales left." The guards made a somewhat hasty exit as Regal and I flew over the Great Ice Cliff, towards the poorer regions of the Ice Kingdom. As soon as we weren't in hearing range Regal growled and flexed his claws, looking over his shoulder. "I should have clawed their stupid, useless muzzles to shreds," he said. "No, you shouldn't have," I hissed back at him. "But since we obviously can't return to the Ice Kingdom - at least not for the time being - we're going to have to do some poking around. Something is wrong. Like...like..." "Like we don't belong?" Regal guessed, flicking his tail. "I know. Something feels like it just shifted." "Come on," I said, and I unfurled my wings and took off into the sky. _____________________________________________________________________________________ We were lost. In the Claws of the Clouds Mountains. After weeks and moons of flying, hunting, and scouring the range, we had caught sight of a patrol of SandWings. They had been too far for us to catch up with, so we could only watch as they flew back to the horizon. Regal picked fruit from his teeth. "I can't get used to the flavour," he said. "I miss the taste of..." I flicked his muzzle. "What are we going to do?" I asked. "We have no idea what is going on. Those IceWings were convinced that the queen was Queen Glacier, and not me. And did you see how fast the weather changed after that snowstorm?" This was what most of our conversations were about, now. Revolving on this topic, never ending. "I think I recognize that mountain," Regal said, interrupting me. With the month passing by he had taken on a much more casual tone with me, and didn't refer to me as 'Your Majesty' anymore.. "What?" "That mountain," Regal said, pointing with his shimmery white wing. "Doesn't that look like Jade Mountain?" I squinted. Sure enough, the fanged peaks were glaring back at me. I could see the flecks of shining scales flying around the mountain, swarming it like a beehive. But the problem was was that the colours didn't represent any tribe in particular: brown, black, white and even sandy gold, to name a few... RainWings? I instantly curled my claws in disgust. I had seen what Glory's elite force known as the Venom Guild could do. What venom from those long, curved fangs could do to a dragon. My own sister was disfigured forever, with a black melted mass where here wings used to be. Regal caught my unease and he put a reassuring wing over my shoulders. Never before was I aware of how young we really were....was I really only seven years? I felt one hundred...or one thousand... "We can go around Jade Mountain, if you like," he said. I took a steadying breath. "No. We should go. Maybe these dragons know something." My claws tingled at the prospect. Regal studied me, then he exhaled. "Alright," he said. "But I'll claw off anyone's snout if they make a snippy remark at us." We quickly polished our scales and soon arrived at the peaks. I was astounded. We were surrounded, not by just RainWings, but SandWings, SkyWings, NightWings...every single tribe, gathered here! No one gave us a second glance. Dragons rushed past us in a jostling crowd, carrying scrolls or platters of food or strange looking lanterns the pulsed with a golden light. I could see a nervous looking NightWing curled next to her mother by the protective roots of a tree. I could see a pair of regal blue Sea- No. Anemone. Regal gasped. Our talons clutched the mountain rocks and Regal looked as if someone had stabbed him with a dagger. Anemone, his partner in patrols, his partner who he loved as a little sister, inseparable friends, until Tsunami won her back. I shoved Regal forwards. "Don't look, don't look," I growled at him. "But-" "She might be different," I said back at him, softening my tone only slight. "Don't worry. She wasn't wearing the Empire's crest, and that one scar over her eye...it's not there." The scar, which had run vertically across Anemone's eye from a training accident, was not slashed across her scales. A new idea was forming in my mind... The caves were lit, which was surprising. A young NightWing sat by a sign that read, Welcome Students! in flowers. Frankly it looked awful, but the NightWing distracted me with a loud, singsong voice. "Welcome to the Great Hall of Jade Mountain! Let me guess - you're Moonwatcher, aren't you?" I halted as I recognized the nervous NightWing from earlier. She had scales like teardrops, and instantly I wanted to wing away into the sky. A mind reader. Regal took another start as the overenthusiastic NightWing introduced herself as Fatespeaker to the trembling Moonwatcher. She shrieked something in delight at her, which Moonwatcher answered after casting a frightful glance at us and ducking into one of the long corridors that stretched off of the main cavern. Fatespeaker turned to face us. "Oh, you're IceWings!" she said, smiling particularly at Regal. "I hardly ever get to see those! What are your names?" I racked my brains. If I was wrong and Anemone was the general, she would know that we were at this strange academy and probably rip us apart with her animus magic. "I'm...Alba," I said after a moment's thought. "And my...brother...Changbai?" I could practically feel Regal's eyes boring into my skull like two indignant bee stings. "Hmmm..." Fatespeaker said, running her claws along a scroll. "How do you write that?" After that, we were given scrolls with fancy, loopy writing. Regal flicked his wings as he tucked his scroll in a makeshift rug bag that we had found a few days earlier. This Jade Mountain place was weird, to say the least. Nothing like the constant fight at home. Home. Fatespeaker grinned at us again. "Second tunnel on the left. Changbai, your cave is the fourth to the left, and Alba, yours is fourth to the right. Simple enough!" "Thank you," I said politely, dipping my head. I was rewarded with a beaming Fatespeaker. Huh. All the NightWings I had ever met had been cruel and conniving. Nothing like this bundle of fluff. I flexed my serrated claws, though, ready for anything. NightWings were clever. I hoped that she couldn't read my mind...it was unlikely, I eventually decided. She didn't have that glint in her eyes, even though two silver scales glittered like teardrops along her face. I had to stick around now. Safer here than anywhere else. I followed my directions. I had to shove past a pair of SandWings, one of which who watched me with a critical glare. I assessed him. First I would have to after the tail barb. Maybe some frostbreath would do the trick. And then I could rake my claws across that freckled muzzle of his... Regal nudged me. "How long are we going to playact?" he asked in a whisper so that the SandWings couldn't hear us. "We can't..." He waited as a sickly NightWing bustled past us, coughing, and then continued. "We can't keep doing this. We're going to get discovered." "Regal," I said, "I'm the queen of the IceWings. Or was, at least, but that's hardly the point. We need to see what's going on, and fast." Regal hesitated, then he tipped his head. "Right. Alba," he added with a wry smile. "See you around, Changbai." "Seriously, though. Changbai?" he asked. "Why couldn't you pick something epic? Like Wolf or Snowstorm or Flashflood or..." "Whatever." I waved him off. I still felt a little bad for tricking Fatespeaker But an IceWing queen has got to do what an IceWing queen has got to do. The cave was cramped. A nest of fur was waiting for me in a corner alongside a mahogany scroll rack, probably of SandWing origins. A jutting rock took up most of the space, and I was alarmed to see a NightWing already reading on it. She didn't have silver scales on the corners of her eyes, so I relaxed. Slightly. First things that NightWings did was attack with their front. So if I could freeze her forelegs, I could probably... "You must be my clawmate," the NightWing said coolly. "What's your name? Freezedeath? Frozenheart?" I already didn't like her. "I'm Alba," I said, shifting my wings tidily and glaring at her. "I'm Mindreader," she snapped back. She obviously didn't like the fact that I was older than her...and bigger. I've seen more fights than you've been alive, little NightWing, I though archly, settling on my nest. The fur had a scent of arctic winds clinging to it, distracting me momentarily. Everything was so confusing right now. "Sorry," a young and somewhat scarred SeaWing said as she poked her head through the entrance. "I'm looking for my cave. Fatespeaker said something about Alba and Mindreader...?" She looked from me to Mindreader, clearly nervous. I didn't have to worry about this SeaWing... But still, I would have to watch out for her tail... "Sorry, wrong cave," Mindreader said, flicking her tail over her talons. "Don't listen to her," I said kindly. Or I tried to be. Usually as an IceWing queen I was spared pleasantries and proper manners. Because at Jade Mountain, I was an equal. "I'm Alba, and this..." "I'm Mindreader," the dragonet said sourly. She glared daggers at me as the SeaWing introduced herself as Snail. I wanted to be back home. I wanted to see my tribe again, and my sister...who was going to take care of her now? Restless, I gradually slipped into a broken sleep. The next day was bright. The sky was blue - I assumed - and dragonets were already bustling along the corridors. Only Snail was in the cave with me, and she raised her rounded face and gave me a tentative smile. "Mindreader said she had some important stuff to do," she said, flexing her webbed talons. I scraped my own along the rock floor. If only I could feel the crunch of snow in the Ice Kingdom, the scent of prey on the wind. Flying with my siblings in an arctic tundra. "Oh, and there's an IceWing waiting for you," she added. "He's really cute, though. Do you know him?" I was amused at this poor SeaWing. "That must be Changbai," I said. "He's my....brother." Ugh, the nightmares. Regal, for a brother? "Oh," Snail said. She fiddled with her dark blue wings, then raised her emerald eyes to meet mine. "Do you think that you could introduce us?" "Um, later?" I asked. A stab of jealously had just raked through my scales, which was odd. I shrugged that aside. "I need to go and see what he wants." I gave Snail an awkward pat as I caught sight of her crestfallen expression. "I've been waiting hours," Regal burst out. "I was stuck with my annoying...clawmate, or whatever...some woozy RainWing..." I gave him a nudge. "And you, my friend, should know better than talk to your queen like that." We had to keep our wings close to our sides so that we didn't scrape them against the sides of the corridor...which caused me to catch sight of something in the corner... I moved closer. "Welcome to the Jade Mountain Academy! Feel free to explore the whole school today (and everyday!) Everything is for you. Food is available in the prey centre...blah blah..." I skipped to the end. Nothing of interest there. But I did just skim read. A tactic I had learned as I had to sift through mounds of reports. Wait, when was that? I wasn't Eclipse anymore. To fit in at this Jade Mountain Academy, I was Alba. A regular IceWing, seven years old just, and I had had a normal upbringing. "I think that they have a library or something," Regal said, breaking into my thoughts. "Want to see?" I shrugged. "Don't get us lost or anything." "I memorized my school map," Regal said, moving smartly along the corridor. Leaf coloured lanterns shone back to us as we wound around multiple students fighting, talking or reading. Nothing like the discipline at the Ice Kingdom. We reached the library. It was a cave, almost as big as the entrance cavern, with windows fitted with green leaves. I could see the paler membrane, casting emerald shadows on the smooth stone floors. And then my throat went dry as I heard the voice of Starflight. Regal's tail arched over his head like a SandWing's and I whipped around, nearly knocking into a rack of scrolls. Moonwatcher was leaning over the desk and talking with Starflight. Every instinct told me to claw and slash at this NightWing. But I could see that this wasn't the cold, hardened king that I had known. This was a dragonet, a dragonet with a bandage wrapped over his eyes. He was blind... I touched Regal's shoulder. "I've got to get used to this," Regal said as Moonwatcher moved away. Starflight busied his talons by sorting a series of scrolls on his desk, and then I gulped and took a hesitant step forwards. "Uh, Moon? Did you want something more?" Starflight asked, turning a sightless face towards us. "We're Changbai and Alba," I hedged. "Oh, the IceWings that Fatespeaker told me about," Starflight said dryly. I was so ready to claw him. I was poised for action, but I forced myself to relax. This was a harmless dragon, much like Snail. "What can I do for you?" "I was wondering....do you have any scrolls on...say, alternate timelines?" I asked. "I don't think so," Starflight said thoughtfully. "I'll have a look and I'll let you know as soon as I find one. Why the interest?" "I heard - that is, we - our mother talking about it with our father," I said easily. My mother had indeed talked of alternate timelines with my father. Ugh, and Regal was still my 'brother.' This was going to be hard. I didn't think that I could keep up with acting like Regal's my brother. Starflight flicked his ears. "Interesting. I thought another student asked me about those recently..." I fluttered my wings, but Regal was steering me back to the entrance. I waved sadly at the lush green light of the library before continuing along the corridors. "Sorry, but I couldn't stand in front of that dragonet anymore," Regal said, tail rigid. "Just thinking of how he took my brother's village...I want to claw his muzzle and freeze his face with frostbreath." "But that's not the Starflight that attacked us," I said. "I think that we..." "Wait, do you hear that?" Regal asked. He cocked his head so that his pure white scales glinted in the light. I pricked my ears. I could hear the sounds of braying, clucking, shouting, and roaring in the distance, so faint that I almost didn't catch it right away. "I guess we should investigate," I said reluctantly. I really wanted to stay in the library, where it was peaceful and where that green light shone so brightly. Maybe tomorrow morning, when hardly anyone was awake. The source of the noise was the prey centre. And it was literally huge. Chickens, goats and other animals galloped along, shrieking as dragonets of all colours pounced on them with glee. I shied away from a rambunctious MudWing who was eating something noisily and I had to step delicately around a NightWing who was clearly enjoying his recently caught chicken immensely, in a very, very messy way. An IceWing, cold and poised, approached us, her tail curled in a neat spiral, not unlike a RainWing. Her blue eyes surveyed us critically. "You must be new," she said coolly. "Alba," I said politely. "Changbai," Regal answered. The IceWing studied her serrated claws, clearly uninterested in the din that surrounded us. "I'm Icicle," she said. "Princess Icicle, niece of Queen Glacier. I'm looking for my brother." I gasped and ducked my head in a hasty bow, It was a little sloppy, but I'm proud to say that it was better than Regal's. He hit his head on the floor. Princess Icicle flicked her tail. "A NightWing," she said with a hiss, ears flicked backwards slightly. I turned and saw Moonwatcher, clearly incredibly uncomfortable, while being lead by a brightly coloured, flamboyant RainWing. I was staring in horror when Icicle gave me a bemused glance. "You've never seen a NightWing before?" she asked. "Oh, they are awful." They made their way to a pile of fruit, where a placid looking dragonet was munching on a mango. Juice dribbled across his talons, golden in the morning sunlight. I caught a glimpse of a tumble of boulders on the other side of a rock barrier. Suddenly, shouts and cries of excitement sounded on one side of the room. I turned my head and saw a cluster of dragonets pursuing something on two legs. I curled my claws in disgust as I saw that the creature was a scavenger. The scavengers had taken advantage of us in our weakened state and had raided small villages along the coast. Treasures had been snatched by their creepy little paws, and I wanted to bare my teeth at this two legged creature. Regal looked sick. His eyes were glued to the scavenger, and I remembered that he had been part of a hatching that had been looted by these pests. He still had a twisted scar along his one side from the sharp end of a scavenger's claw. "Come on," I said, leading Regal away. He followed numbly. We found refuge in the library. Yet another IceWing was there, reading a scroll. She raised her head and smiled at us. "Escaping?" she asked. "Sort of," I answered, sitting Regal on a mat of rugs that were coloured as bright as a RainWing's scales. "Why don't you read this scroll?" I asked, placing one that I had picked off of the rack in his serrated talons. "A scavenger," Regal said, sounding ill. "How?" I placed a talon on his shoulder. "Don't worry," I said. "Just read this scroll. Okay?" I patted his blindingly white scales. Starflight tapped his desk with a claw. " Speaking of which, I found a scroll about alternate timelines," he said. His tail flicked as he reached for one that was resting in a pile of mouldy, insect-eaten scrolls. I took the scroll and thanked him, and then I saw him feel along the stamps that had names spelt backwards. Uh oh... I could see Moonwatcher, and Snail, and Mindreader....and two names that must have been the IceWings that we had taken the place of. Snowdrift and Frost. "You know what?" I said, hastily. "I'm fine, for now." I gave the scroll back and Starflight took it with a disgruntled sigh. Category:Fanfictions (Incomplete) Category:Content (WillowandtheWoof) Category:Fanfictions (Fanon) Category:Fanfictions Category:Fanfictions (Semi-Canon)